Shattered
by Eroket
Summary: A love between a tortured brother and a caring sister...and a cruel father who would destroy it and shape one of the most brutal warlords in the land (Unfinished.)


Warning: This fic contains some mature themes later on.  
Shattered Fort de-Droka had been erected long ago in the days of Hadras's ancestors when the family had practically ruled the southlands. Tall and majestic with walls the color of blood. The golden days of the de-Droka's had ended many years ago due to their short sightedness. They had been driven back to their one monument of power with one vermin horde to serve them. And there they remained for scores of years. Each new king dreamed of a new conquest. Each new king groomed his successor in the ways of war and pain. Especially pain. The heir to the throne was treated harsh and cruel. They were treated no better then slaves in the hopes they would be hardened by their constant physical anguish and become a worthy heir of the de-Droka family. Taren de-Droka, the current heir to the throne lay in the hallway on all fours, panting for breath. His fine red clothes were ripped and torn and his back was bleeding from open wounds and cuts. Surrounding him were four foxes dressed in the uniforms of King Hadras's captains, one held a lash in one paw, another a small dagger. The others were content to use their fists and footpaws against the young fox. "Turn the brat over, Lethin!" The fox with the lash replied with a cold laugh, amusement dancing in his amber eyes, "I want to see him cry and beg!" One of the foxes with no weapon expressed the cruel mirth he felt with a cruel snigger before kicking Taren in the side, knocking him onto his back. Taren wasn't badly injured, despite his appearance. His cuts weren't deep and his bones were bruised but left unbroken. The captains knew how to cause the most pain without doing the most damage. The fox who had requested Taren be put on his back, gripped the young fox by his collar and pulled a fist back. Taren's body shook with the effort of forcing air into his lungs. The captain let his fist hang in the air, hoping to see Taren plea and burst into tears.  
Taren did not plea. Taren did not cry.  
Taren smiled.  
It was an insane grin too, stretching from ear to ear and showing all his pearl white fangs. This smile gave the captain pause. "Aww, what's the use?"  
The captain's amber eyes looked over the fox. "I think he's had enough for one day, mates.."  
The fox with the lash gave a disappointed growl. "Fine.lets go tell Lord Hadras and-What the hell are you smiling at, you damn brat?!"  
He fist flew through the air and hit Taren in the stomach, driving the wind from him. It had no affect upon the young fox's grin still he smiled at his tormentor,  
The fox growled in anger and pushed Taren back to the ground. "I'll have you crying again tomorrow, whelp."  
Taren's voice rose in a strange-almost eerie- tone. A high crazed giggle.  
"Did you hit him on the head to much, Lethrin?"  
"Of course not, Goril! You know Hadras doesn't need an insane heir!"  
Lethrin curled his lip. "Looks crazy t'me.Look at his eyes."  
Taren's eyes were his most compelling feature. One was a molten red, burning and chaotic. The second was ice blue, frozen and still. The fox captain shuddered a bit and nodded. "C'mon, lets get back to the king.then we can do some real work."  
His partners nodded and left, leaving Taren lying on his back. And though his mad laughter had ceased, his smile remained.  
"Taren?" A soft voice called. The young fox could make out footsteps.  
  
"Taren, can you hear me?"  
The young fox was only vaguely aware of a figure kneeling next to him, soft arms lifting his from the floor gently and enveloping him in a hug. "Taren, I'm so sorry."  
"Not.your.fault." The younger fox managed to whisper, resting his head on a soft shoulder.  
Pyria de-Droka was beautiful by most any standards, the elder daughter of King Hadras, she had passed the line into adulthood and many whispered she was the spitting image of her late mother, alabaster white fur and eyes that looked like they had been fashioned from sapphire. She was everything her mother had been and everything her father despises: Kind, gentle and protective.  
"It is.damn it, I should be able to help you more." Pyria's soft voice hardened as she uttered a rare curse.  
"Doesn't matter to me, Pyria.I can take the pain, you know."  
The vixen released Taren from her hug and took his paw in hers, helping him rise to his feet, albeit a bit shakily. "You shouldn't have to take that!"  
Taren sighed, his manic grin was gone from his features, the molten rage and cold in his dual toned eyes, leaving a look of sadness and abject hopelessness.  
"Just help me get to my room."  
Through small windows in the corridors of the fort, sunlight through the windows turned a fiery red, heralding the coming night.  
Pyria rested one white paw on Taren's shoulder, helping him stay upright as they neared his room. The young fox gripped the handle and opened the door, a small creak emitting from its old hinges.  
Taren's room was neither large nor elaborate. There was a bathing place, a bed and a desk but that was it. King Hadras didn't permit his heir a luxury. Said it would make him lazy and ineffective.  
The young fox nearly collapsed on the bed. "We're missing dinner."  
Pyria smiles gently, sitting next to Tarem, stroking his head lightly, running her paw through his deep red fur. "I don't care."  
Taren turned on his side so his back was to her. "Me neither."  
Pyria's breath came in a sharp gasp as she saw his ragged and torn back. "How could he do this to you, Taren? Why does he do this?"  
A bitter smile, coupled with the memories of nearly five years of pain spread over his lips. "You've asked before.you know the answer."  
Pyria's eyes hardened to a hard crystalline blue. "Family law." She spat it out. "De-Droka law."  
"Thy heir shall be hardened and the sword tempered but not broken until it is fit to be wielded." Taren replied, quoting the laws.  
"Shouldn't be like that."  
Taren said nothing for a long time before whispering. "The lullaby mother taught you when you were little.will you sing it for me?"  
Taren asked this question every night, and Pyria gave the same answer, her soft voice lifted as she sang her brother to sleep.  
  
Even the night must fail For light sleeps in the eyes And the dark becomes dark on dark Until the darkness dies.  
  
Soon the eye resolves Complexities of night Into stillness, where the heart Falls into fabled light. How loud your heart is calling, love, How close the darkness at your breast, How hectic are the rivers, love, Drawn through your dying wrist.  
  
And love, what heat your frail skin hides, As pure as salt, as sweet as death, And in the dark the red moon rides, The foxfire of your breath.  
  
Taren eyes closed as sleep overtook him, just as the song ended.  
Pyria covered him with the blankets, kissed his cheek. "Good night, little brother." She whispered.  
She left as quietly as she could, leaving Taren to the night and to his dreams.  
  
Author's note: this isn't all of Shattered whatsoever.hopefully, if my time permits, I'll be able to have the rest up Veeeery soon. 


End file.
